


"What I meant to say"

by Moon_Jigsaw



Category: Death in Paradise
Genre: Confession, Death in Paradise - Freeform, F/M, First Kiss, Friends to Lovers, Love, relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-20
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-16 07:48:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,092
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29572758
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Moon_Jigsaw/pseuds/Moon_Jigsaw
Summary: An alternate/extended ending to the finale episode of Death in Paradise series 10.Neville finally tells Florence how he feels about her, right before she's about to go on her first date after losing Patrice.What will she say when he finally admits her loves her?“Tonight, there is only one man who will get to spend the evening sitting across from Florence, enjoying her company and it’s the man who was brave enough to ask her out for once.”“Was there something you wanted?” she probed, her curls falling off her shoulder as she turned her head.”“She leant forwards and affectionately interlaced her manicured fingers with his rough hands, gently pulling his closer than they had ever been, causing Neville to hesitantly swallow and awkwardly smile.”
Relationships: Florence Cassell/Neville Parker
Comments: 21
Kudos: 37





	"What I meant to say"

As he sat at Catherine’s bar starting off into the slowly descending sunset, surrounded by the team, he couldn’t help but think of the one key person missing from the table. They all quickly shot a tiny glass of rum to celebrate the success on the recent case they had solved, well everyone except, JP’s loving wife, Rosie, who was delicately sipping an orange juice from a highball glass whilst attending to the couple’s new-born twin girls.

He stood up to go to the bar and collect the next rounds of drinks for the team, his knitted mustard tie swinging wildly as he quickly paced towards the bar where Catherine was stood. As usual she was wearing vibrant patterned dress that flowed over her body, accompanied by a headband that complimented it perfectly, keeping her short coffee-coloured curls out of her face.

He sat down at one of the few leathered cushioned stools that stood in front of the bar and gently rested his forearms onto the slightly weathered wooden countertop. He sighed, and made eye contact with Catherine. Even with a simple sigh and just a forlorn look plastered on his face, Catherine could tell exactly how he was feeling, and was certain to give some of her typically great advice. In truth, Catherine was and always had been a trusting outlet to the anyone and everyone who visited her bar, whether frequently or only the once, in particular to the police team that had longed served the island.

“You only have yourself to blame Neville, with Florence” she said softly, whilst placing a wedge of lime into the neck of a beer bottle behind the bar.

“I tried Catherine, besides she’s only going on one date, it’s not like she marrying the guy” he spoke glumly, uncertain of his own words as they left his pink lips.

“More excuses” she quickly replied, in an effort to inspire him to find Florence.

“What do you want me to do?” he enquired, his chocolate pupils dilating ever so slightly emphasising the internal turmoil he was currently experiencing.

“Go and tell her, go and tell her” Catherine practically ordered him, her voice sounding harsher than normal. 

“What now?” he questioned her, whilst nervously playing with his pale fingers, with the tiniest glimmer of hope appearing in his eyes.

“Then when Neville? When will you ever find the courage to do it?” she continued to press him, now placing a few colourful looking drinks onto a small silver tray.

“Tonight, there is only one man who will get to spend the evening sitting across from Florence, enjoying her company and it’s the man who was brave enough to ask her out for once.” 

“Try being bold” she proposed, a little smirk appearing on her face, whilst pouring roughly half a dozen or so ice cubes into a tall ornately carved emerald glass.

Whatever she said, must have really worked, because in that instant he suddenly stood up from the bar stool he had been sat on and raced towards the lemon-yellow police van that was parked just down the street, desperately fiddling in his tan trouser pockets to find the keys that were jingling inside.

He leapt into the driver’s seat, and hurriedly pulled the seat belt across his chest and practically jammed it into the lock, whilst turning the key in the ignition.   
“Just go and tell her you like her, its no big deal, no big deal at all, just do it, just knock on the door and say what you want to say” he continuously muttered to himself as he sped towards Florence’s house.

He frantically parked the vehicle in the gravelled space in front of her property, and he ran towards her back door and veranda, heavily breathing as he did so. After he finally reached the door, he leant his arm against one of the columns that held up the veranda and then hesitated for a few seconds, wondering if he really wanted to go through with what he was about to do. 

He cautiously stepped closer to the door and raised his arm, preparing to knock; he took one final deep breath, cleared his throat and readjusted the tie that now hung loosely around his neck.

Finally, he mustered up the courage and knocked lightly onto the wooden door.  
Florence soon came to the door and gradually opened it when she saw that Neville was on the other side, with a typically awkwardly tender smile on his face that partially showed his teeth. His face delicately outlined with the soft glow of setting sun.

“Sir”, she inquired as looked up at him, as he was nervously stood in the doorway.

“Hi Florence, err what time is your err”, he muttered, struggling to find the confidence in his words as he spoke, intermittently checking the watch on his wrist, he was just so entranced by her beauty, especially in the golden glow of the lowering sun.

Her long raven-coloured locks were perfectly curled into a dainty updo, that highlighted the gentle sharpness of her cheekbones. Her wide mahogany eyes sparkled in the light, highlighting the miniscule auric specks that were scattered within. She wore a sunshine yellow dress that hugged her figure perfectly, with a tie across her chest, exposing the tiniest part of her toned midriff. 

“Oh, he’s picking me up in twenty minutes” she replied, glancing at the clock that hung on her wall, her soft voice calming him somewhat.

“Right” he almost whispered in reply, the word barely audible.

“Was there something you wanted?” she probed, her curls falling off her shoulder as she turned her head.

“There was actually” he spoke, nervously swallowing, his Adam’s apple becoming extremely visible in his anxiety.

“And what was it?” she continually asked him, a petite smile materialising on her mouth.

“Well, err, thing is, I had something I wanted t-to tell you” he stammered, maintaining tentative eye contact with Florence as he did so, in an effort to push himself to actually say what he came here to say.

“What? Sir?” She queried him even further, cocking her head to the side.

“What I wanted to say was err” he continued to mumble, slightly louder than before, his soft docile chestnut eyes locking with hers.

“Well, err the reason I came here, was to say that I err….” He paused, his teeth on the edge of his lips and his arm awkwardly scratching the back of his sun-soaked head.

He looked at her again, completely hypnotised by all of Florence, her reassuring smile, long eyelashes and vibrant yet calming personality.

“I wanted to say that, umm, that I think that I love you”, he said, partially surprised by how quickly it had actually escaped his mouth in the moment.

She stood there for a few seconds to process what he had just uttered to her, but to Neville it felt more like forever. The anticipation creeped into his brain and he gradually began to marginally panic inside, his breathing hitched slightly and his arms hung awkwardly in mid-air.

“Oh God, Florence, I’m so sorry I shouldn’t have said anything, err, I’m not sure why I told you that actually” his cheeks becoming a pale shade of rose, his eyes shrinking ever so slightly as he leant down to the ground to retrieve his backpack as he desperately started to leave, embarrassed and somewhat angry at himself for letting in own feelings get in the way of a professional working relationship.

God, what was he thinking?

Florence was his DS and he was her DI, he was her boss for God’s sake. What if she was only being nice to him these past few months, because she felt bad for him, he hadn’t exactly fitted in when he had arrived on Saint-Marie. He had constantly irritated the Commissioner with his odd methods of solving cases and his extensive lists of allergies and medication to prevent said allergies. Someone like her wouldn’t deliberately choose to be with someone like him for extended periods of time, all his medications, the small quirks he included in his routines, and the meticulous way he packed his backpack, that he took pretty much everywhere.

“You know Florence, I think, err, I might just go home, could we possibly forget what I just said?” he stammered, turning around so he could head back to the truck and repeat to himself the awkward conversation that had just occurred the entire way home.

“Sir, why are you leaving so suddenly?” she asked, stepping closer to him, his head appearing over his shoulder in shock that she had replied.

“You never let me answer you” she murmured, inching closer, the sunlight enhancing her features as she paced.

“Oh, err I guess I was scared of what you would say, I don’t have a good track record with err women you see” he nervously gulped, running one of his hands anxiously through his gelled hair.

She leant forwards and affectionately interlaced her manicured fingers with his rough hands, gently pulling his closer than they had ever been, causing Neville to hesitantly swallow and awkwardly smile.

“Sir, I mean Neville” she corrected herself, steadying herself as she spoke. 

“Why on earth would you think that I didn’t like you? We’ve spent so much time together recently, days and nights, mostly just us two. Surely that must mean something doesn’t it?” she whispered, then paused, watching his face become less panicked as her response.

“Of course, I love you Neville” she breathed, it felt so natural saying his actual name for once, rather than the usual informal sir.

A smile erupted on Neville’s face, surprised that she felt the same way about him, and he hadn’t been hopelessly pining at imaginary sparks these past few months. They soon entered into a tender embrace, Neville’s hands delicately placed around her waist and hers looped around his surprisingly muscular neck.

“Florence” his voice purred, with a subtle growl hidden underneath, his hands now gingerly pulling her closer to him, so that their foreheads were touching one another’s and they could feel each other’s warm breath on their skin. 

Her eyes blooming a slightly darker shade of amber as they inched closer to one another. He placed his hands onto her flushed cheeks, delicately brushed a stray onyx lock of hair away from her face and tucked it neatly behind her ear. For a few seconds they just stared into each other’s hypnotising pools, absorbed by one another’s mere presence.

His thumb gently massaging small circles into her chin. His sculpted jawline highlighted in the dimming sunlight pouring through the windows. She gently placed her hand upon his cheek, tenderly rubbing her fingers through the partial stubble that fell upon his chin.

Within a few seconds, she leaned up onto her tiptoes and delicately placed her lips onto his. After he got over the initial surprise of her kissing him, he lovingly reciprocated, deepening the kiss and placing his hands on her exposed neck, creating tingles of electricity between the pair.

After a few minutes they broke apart, smiles on both of their faces.

“I guess, I’ll have to thank Catherine later” he laughed.

“For what?” she giggled, interlocking their hands again, never wanting to let go.

“For all of this, Florence, you make me so ridiculously happy. She made me come here and tell you how I feel. In fact, she’s been a pretty great confidant these past few months.” He admitted, grasping her hands equally as tight.

“We’ll go together, tomorrow, right now all I want to do is enjoy these first few moments with you” she hummed, tenderly tracing small shapes onto his cheek.  
“I guess, you’re not going on that date now?” he questioned, a brief smirk appearing on his lips. 

“The only date I want to go on, is one with you Neville” she purred.

For the remainder of the evening the loved-up pair, sat cuddled together on the veranda, Florence’s head tucked neatly into the crook of his neck, hoping that tiredness would simply never come, so they could experience this bliss forever.

Down at the bar, the others had barely noticed that Neville had left, they were too busy arguing about what Rosie was cooking for dinner. However, Catherine was smiling to herself as she cleaned a few dirty glasses, Florence hadn’t turned up for her date and Neville hadn’t returned from his mission crestfallen. She knew they’d be together enjoying each other’s company, as they should.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! After I watched it I knew I just had to write something to fill the cliffhanger that series 10 left us on, I hope we'll eventually get them together, but I just couldn't wait almost a year for it!  
> So I hope I've done the characters some form of justice.  
> MJ


End file.
